Fear Factors When Selling your Home

by | May 12, 2016

Latest consumer research by eMoov.co.uk has highlighted that money, stress and time constraints are still the biggest fears for UK homeowners when selling their home.

eMoov surveyed over 1,000 UK homeowners across the nation and asked them ‘when selling a property, what are the top three things you fear the most?’. To see the breakdown of the national results you can find the full report here, or check out the specific results from homeowners in the Midlands below.

Despite UK homeowners currently enjoying the highest average house prices on record, securing the right price still tops the list of fear factors.

Just like the rest of the nation 55% of those asked in the Midlands said not getting the price they wanted or needed was their primary fear when selling. Joining the top stop is the stress of the selling process with 55% of homeowners saying it’s their top fear factor.

Also in line with the national results (43%), time constraints completed the top three fear factors, with 41% of homeowners, in the Midlands, being afraid they wouldn’t be able to sell their home in the time they needed to.

Other fear factors stated by UK homeowners included paying too much in estate agent fees (34%), finding a new property to live in upon selling (26%), dealing with the buyer (12%), picking the wrong estate agent in the first place (9%), getting a mortgage for their next home (5%) and that their new property might drop in value in the future (2%).

Not getting the asking price is often based on the seller chasing a property they want to buy which can often mean treading a very fine line between being able to afford the move or not. In addition to this, traditional agents are more inclined to push for a sale at a figure below the asking price as it best suits the agent and not the customer, so it is understandable that the fear in getting the price an individual would want for their house, is somewhat preempted.

Not being able to sell in time is always very closely linked with ‘getting the right price’. Generally speaking, the time scale of someone moving is usually linked to a property they want and having the chance to snap it up. If an individual has seen the house they want to buy but is unable to get the right price for their own and therefore move on, would definitely cause a feeling of fear of missing out and result in them accepting a lower price.

The stress of it all, I presume, has been answered by individuals who have sold before and have experienced the often very poor service they are likely to by high street agents. Constantly having to chase an agent and feeling out of control with the progression on their sale will undoubtedly cause a seller distress.

I am a little surprised that paying too much in estate agent fees didn’t make the top three. High street estate agent fees have rocketed in line with house prices over the years despite no additional service being offered, some may argue the service has even declined, and so the dated commission fee structure is one of the biggest obstacles to moving home and causing fear.

Paul Beard

Local Property Director, eMoov.co.uk

If you’re looking for an estate agent in the Midlands, click here to contact Paul Beard and get a free valuation.